NORFOLK, Va. – The ODU wrestling team signed three student-athletes to National Letters of Intent on Thursday, head coach Steve Martin announced.

Emilio Saavedra, T.C. Warner, and Joey Balboni will all join the Monarchs for the 2014-15 season.

“We are very excited to bring these three young men into our program,” Martin said. “They are all great citizens and are a perfect fit for our program both on and off the mat. They are all proven winners and have goals to win multiple NCAA championships. This class was special because we were able to sign three wrestlers who hail from arguably the three toughest wrestling states in the country: Pennsylvania, California, and New Jersey. Furthermore, each one will fill huge needs for us in his respective weight class. Ironically, this was the first instance where we were able to receive verbal commitments from all of our signees on the same recruiting trip in early September.”

Emilio Saavedra (133, Modesto, California)

Martin on Saavedra:

“Emilio is a tough competitor who has wrestled against the best in the nation his entire life. He demonstrates exceptional composure and never gets rattled in high-pressure situations. More importantly, his work ethic is second-to-none and he will run through a brick wall for you. Emilio will fill a 133 lb. spot that we recruited extremely hard for.”

“T.C. filled a big need for us in the upper-weights as he projects at 165 lbs. He is the brother of nationally ranked and Academic All-American Monarch wrestler Tristan Warner, who currently wrestles 157 for us. We obviously wanted to keep the brothers together so this was ideal. T.C. competes in the toughest state tournament in the nation being from Pennsylvania so he has faced the toughest competition throughout his career. He is one of the best leg riders in the country and that will translate into championships at the next level.”

“Joey Balboni attends Jonathan Dayton high school, but since they don’t have a wrestling team he competes for David Brearley, the same school that produced current ODU 157 and 165 lb. wrestlers Devin and Dillon Geoghegan. We were lucky to have a close connection with Coach Weaver. It is always good to get a talented 174 lb. recruit, as they are few and far between. Since New Jersey’s state tournament is highly competitive and only has one division, Joey is used to being in college-type situations. He is relentless in his matches and loves to compete.”